Parallels
by Lossefalme
Summary: (Stargate SG-1;LOTR) The SG-1 team embarks on a routine mission to planet PT2571, only to find it's places and people bear an eerie resemblance to things once thought merely the work of creative genius... CHAP 1 REVISED! (Formerly entitled PT2571.)
1. Arrival

**Parallels**(formerly entitled "PT2571")

* * *

Author's Note: **I have changed the plotline of this story a bit and so I have done some pretty large revisions in this chapter. There are some new and changed scenes! And for you Tolkien-savvy people out there, I would consider several elements of the LotR side of this fic to be AU (not everything that happens in the Trilogy or in Tolkien's other LotR-related books is considered to be absolutely true in this fic… that is just what makes this particular story idea work the best!). THIS FIC TAKES PLACE DURING 5TH SEASON OF SG-1.**

This is my first crossover fanfic ever. In fact, I never really liked crossover fics until I came up with this idea. Anyway, I will apologize now for any technicalities you might find throughout the course of this story. It would be possible for me to research and look up all of the millions of details that could be in this thing, but since I don't have months worth of time to spend doing that, I'm going to have to go with just skimming over some of the stuff that would be cool (but not absolutely necessary) to go into. Sorry. I will do my best though. And by the way, if there is anyone out there who has a working knowledge of Welsh or Egyptian hieroglyphics, I could really use your help for parts of this. The R rating is for language and violence, and although romance is not a main part of this story, it might slip in for a guest appearance…

* * *

**Chapter One: Arrival**

Daniel Jackson sneezed explosively, then wiped his hand on his pants and sniffed, looking around with growing dismay at the wide variety of flora and fauna that covered the forest floor.

"Bless you," Colonel Jack O'Neill muttered, passing by Daniel to check on the probe they had sent through the Stargate before them.

"Thanks," Daniel returned, joining the Colonel beside the probe. But after a quick inspection of the machine O'Neill waved a hand dismissively.

"It's fine," he said. "Just a little tangled in the underbrush."

Daniel nodded but said nothing in reply. He looked nervously to the trees looming above him, not sure he felt entirely comfortable in this forest. Things seemed too quiet. Of course, maybe this planet didn't have birds... His gaze drifted right, focusing on the dark mountain range that rose sharply out of the earth a few hundred miles away. The peaks of the mountains reached far overhead and despite their distance from the 'Gate they seemed to darken the sunlight. Daniel wondered if he was the only one who thought the sky over the mountains seemed unnaturally gloomy. But then something else caught his eye.

"Hey, um, guys," he said, moving over to peer more closely at the base of PT2-571's Stargate. "Come look at this."

Jack was the first one to reach him, followed by Major Samantha Carter and the Jaffa Teal'c. They gathered around Daniel as he ran his free hand over the roughly hewn rock that held the Stargate upright. "This isn't the Stargate's original base," he said, frowning. "This is just a boulder with a hacked out indentation for the gate to sit in."

Teal'c moved closer, glancing over the crude cradle with expert eyes. "It appears Daniel Jackson is correct," the Jaffa confirmed, his voice low and deep. "This base appears too primitive to be either Goa'uld or the original makers' technology. And it has no stairs."

"So I noticed," Colonel O'Neill commented, rubbing the bruised shoulder he had landed on after being spat rather unceremoniously from the mouth of the 'Gate. The lack of stairs had also been the reason for the probe's rough tumble. "But what exactly does that mean, the fact that this isn't the original base? I mean... is that bad?"

Daniel shrugged, turning around to face the Colonel. "It could mean a couple of things, actually. But most likely it means the 'Gate has been moved from wherever it was originally to here. Although why they'd want to put it in a place like this is beyond me." He looked again to the mountains beside them.

"Perhaps the original location became unreachable," Teal'c suggested. "Much like your Earth's second 'Gate location."

Daniel nodded. "Well, that's definitely a possibility. And they did bring the Dial Home Device here too, so..."

"Whoever moved it wanted to use it," Carter spoke up.

Daniel nodded again. "And the fact they took the time to cut out the rock... it couldn't have been a quick decision. The moving of the Stargate had to have been planned ahead of time." He craned his neck to look up at the tree branches above the gate. He pointed for the others to look as well. "And look at these branches. They're big and reach right over the Stargate's current position. It would be easy to make up some kind of pulley system here to lift the gate and set it into the rock base."

"Uh huh," Jack mused, obviously not quite following Daniel's train of thought. "And this is all important because...?"

Daniel blinked. "Well because one of our primary objectives is to make contact with people of other planets, right?"

"Yah..." the Colonel drawled impatiently.

"So..." Daniel gestured back at the Stargate and the boulder it sat in. "This set up suggests cooperative intelligence. Obviously they aren't technologically advanced, but they seem to know what the Stargate does, and they moved it on purpose."

Colonel O'Neill raised one eyebrow expectantly.

"There're people here, Jack," Daniel elaborated. "And they weren't Goa'uld or they would have made a better base."

"Ahhh. Well," Jack sighed, "you could have just said that in the first place."

Daniel looked to Major Carter in exasperation, but she just smiled and shrugged.

"All right," the Colonel said casually. "Since the inhabitants of planet PT2-571 didn't see fit to send out a welcome party, I guess we'll just have to go and find them." He smiled dryly at the rest of his team. "We've got six hours before our first report back to General Hammond is due, let's see if we can have something to say by then." He turned and led the way deeper into the woods. "This way, kids. Keep your eyes and ears open, though. If these people turn out to be hostile, I don't want to find out the hard way."

The others fell into line behind the Colonel. Daniel motioned for Sam to go ahead of him and she gave him a nod as she passed. He followed her and Teal'c silently took up the rear. The four cautious visitors made their way as quietly as possible through the forest, weapons held at the ready and eyes constantly scanning their surroundings.

But the woods around them remained still.

* * *

Jack slowed his pace, bringing his weapon up and straining his eyes to look ahead through the many tree trunks and half grown saplings. He cursed under his breath, wishing for once they had landed in a nice, open area. It was impossible to see more then a few feet ahead in this underbrush, and he could have sworn he heard something…

A twig snapped somewhere off to his right and immediately the muzzles of four rifles swung in that direction. Jack didn't have to order the others to freeze and take up defensive positions, they had already done so. The forest around them plunged into deathly silence; the only sound penetrating the stillness was the quiet breathing of the four motionless people beneath the trees. A slight breeze rustled through the branches overhead, loosing a few green and yellow leaves which twirled in lazy spirals down to the ground and settled silently on the dirt.

A sour smell suddenly filled Jack's nostrils and he wrinkled his nose, grimacing in disgust. He tried to breathe through his mouth, wondering what the hell could make such a smell, but then the sharp snap of released twine and a cry from Daniel brought Jack's attention back to the task at hand. He whirled to face Dr. Jackson only to see the man fall to the ground, his gun forgotten and his left hand going to the arrow shaft protruding from his right bicep.

"Damn," Jack hissed, but then rifle fire exploded through the quiet as Teal'c and Major Carter opened fire into the brush where the arrow had come from.

Shrieks and grunts answered their shots, and Jack joined his fellow team mates at last, the gun bucking in his hands as he emptied a clip, aiming for vague movements of dark shapes among the green foliage. A few more arrows flew out from between the leaves, but all went wide and missed their targets.

Then Jack heard them coming from behind him, and he swung around and filled a leaping figure with bullets before it could land on him. He jumped back as its lifeless body hit the ground, making a face at the sight of it close up. It was ugly. Humanoid for sure, but ugly as hell. He brought the gun up again as two more of the creatures charged at him and Carter, and cut them down before they could get within arm's reach. The rest of the things, whatever they were, scurried off from their semi-hidden spots and vanished into the brush. The panicked sounds of retreating footsteps faded, and then the woods were quiet once more.

Jack did a quick visual sweep of their surroundings, then, satisfied they were alone for the moment, went to Daniel and knelt by the man's side. "Hey," he said softly, wincing at the sight of the spreading blood stain on Jackson's sleeve. "Were those the, uh, "cooperative intelligence" people you were talking about earlier?" He cracked a smile, trying to lighten the mood, and to his relief Daniel grunted, one corner of his mouth lifting in amusement.

"I don't know…" the archaeologist mused, "… possibly."

Jack frowned at the sound of Daniel's voice. He sounded slurred, almost like he was drunk. "Daniel… are you all right?"

Daniel opened his mouth, but it took him a moment to reply. He looked in Jack's direction but his eyes didn't seem to focus. "Um… no. I don't think… so. I think… it's a drug… poison… something…"

"Great." Jack looked up to the concerned faces of Carter and Teal'c. "We need to get this arrow out of him now. Major, get the first aid stuff. Teal'c, I'm gonna need your help to pull this out."

The Jaffa nodded, coming around to kneel beside the Colonel. He grasped the arrow shaft, bracing himself to pull it out, but Daniel grabbed his wrist suddenly.

"Wait…" Daniel croaked thickly. But then his eyes rolled back in his head and his body went limp, sagging back down to the ground.

"Damn," Jack swore. "Is he alive? Please say he's still alive…"

Teal'c checked Dr. Jackson's pulse and nodded gravely. "His heart still beats regularly. I believe he has simply fallen unconscious."

"Yah," Jack agreed, breathing a silent sigh of relief. "Carter, we need that first aid!"

"Right here," Sam replied, dropping in between the Jaffa and the Colonel. She swiftly cut the sleeve away from the injury with a small pair of scissors and peeled back the blood soaked material. "All right Teal'c," she said, opening a sterile gauze package. "Go ahead and pull it out."

The Jaffa nodded, then grasped the thick wooden shaft firmly.

"At least now he won't feel it," Jack mumbled.

Teal'c did not answer, but with one quick tug the arrow point came away easily from Daniel's arm. Teal'c balanced himself against the ground with his free hand, looking surprised at the ease with which the arrow had come free. Carter moved in immediately, putting the gauze patch over the bleeding wound and pressing down firmly. With her other hand she began to unwind some gauze wrap to hold the patch in place, and she nodded for Colonel O'Neill to tear off some medical tape from the roll.

He did so obediently, readying two short strips and handing them to Sam when she asked for them. After she had secured the wrap Sam sat back, surveying her work and sighing heavily.

"Well," she said, "that's all I can do. The wound doesn't look infected… at least not yet. But we have no idea what was on that arrow… it could be a slow working lethal poison for all we know."

Jack nodded. "We need to get him back to the SGC as soon as possible."

"I agree." Carter turned to Teal'c. "Teal'c, do you still have the arrow…" she trailed off as the Jaffa handed her the bloody projectile. She took it gingerly and inspected the metal tipped head. "Look," she said, pointing to the shoulders of the arrow head. "It's rounded on the wide end. It wasn't made to stick in the flesh, that's why it came out so easily. It's not meant to kill or maim… just to poison…"

"Wonderful," Jack commented sourly.

"We'll take it back with us," Carter said, pulling out a small Ziploc baggie from the first aid kit and dropping the small arrow into it. She sealed it back up carefully. "Janet might be able to analyze the poison from it."

Jack nodded. "All right. Let's get him up and get out of here, shall we?"

"Sounds good to me," the Major replied.

The Colonel stood and picked up Daniel's rifle, slinging it over his shoulder. "Teal'c, will you be able to carry him?"

"Yes," the Jaffa answered. "I believe I can manage."

"Good." Jack bent and picked up Teal'c's rifle as well, putting it over his other shoulder. Then he hefted his own weapon and motioned for them to move out. "Let's go. But be careful, those… things… might decide to come back."

"I'll be ready," Sam assured him.

Teal'c crouched down and carefully slid his arms beneath Daniel's neck and knees. The Jaffa stood slowly, lifting the unconscious Dr. Jackson, and then took up a spot between Colonel O'Neill and Major Carter. "I am ready," he said.

Jack gave a final nod and once again led the way back through the woods, this time making a beeline for the Stargate.

But they hadn't gone very far before another figure moved out in front of Jack, holding a long curved bow with a strung arrow pointed right at Jack's nose. The Colonel raised his rifle but hesitated in pulling the trigger. This person was not one of those creatures… in fact he looked completely human, and he was dressed in a simple earth colored tunic and a long green cloak.

A movement out of his peripheral vision made Jack turn and he realized with sudden dismay that more cloaked people had surrounded his team within a circle of long arrows. He cursed himself silently, wondering how in the hell he could have let the SG-1 team be ambushed twice in one day.

"Sir…?" Carter's voice was full of apprehension, but the Colonel didn't answer her. His eyes were fixed on the person in front of him, obviously the leader of the band of strangers. The man was fairly tall and broad shouldered. His face was clear but lined with years of experience, his light blue eyes were hard and calculating and his dark blond hair fell freely to his shoulders. He glanced over Colonel O'Neill's group, and then, to Jack's surprise, asked a question in a strange language.

O'Neill blinked, having no idea what the man had just said. The Colonel looked over his shoulder to Daniel, but the Dr. was still unconscious. _Great. The language expert among us is out for the count just when we need him the most. Okay then…_ He took a deep breath, then took a gamble and lowered his rifle. "Um… hi," he started awkwardly. "I'm Colonel Jack O'Neill. From Earth. We… come in peace."

The leader stared at him for a moment, and Jack felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. _They don't understand me…_

But then the strange man lowered his arrow and tilted his head. "You… speak the language of Belegrandir?"

Jack raised his eyebrows, shocked to hear the man speaking regular English. "Um, yes," the Colonel said at last, figuring he might as well go with it even if he didn't have the faintest idea who Belegrandir was. At least they could understand each other now. "We do indeed speak the language of… of… Beleg… whoever."

The man nodded, but his face looked troubled. "You say you are from Earth. I am not familiar with this realm. Tell me, in what direction can this Earth be found?"

Jack squinted at the question, not sure he fully understood. He cleared his throat and shifted on his feet, trying to think of a simple way to explain things. This was usually where Daniel stepped in… Jack made a mental note to give Dr. Jackson a good, swift kick as soon as he recovered. The man's timing was impossibly bad. "Well," the Colonel began, "Earth is… it's…well it's…" he glanced back to Sam. "Carter?"

Sam stepped up eagerly, picking up where the Colonel had left off. "Earth is very far away from here," she supplied. "The only way to get there is to go through the Stargate. That's where we came from. We're explorers; we use the Stargate to go to other… realms… and make contact with the people there."

"Hopefully make _friends _with the people there," Jack muttered from behind her, his eyes pointedly going to the arrows that were still strung and aimed at him and his team.

The man in front of them was silent for a long moment, frowning. "Star… gate?" he repeated uncertainly.

"The cha'paa'ai?" Sam tried.

The man's frown only deepened.

"You know," Jack put in, "the big round stone ring with a bunch of funky symbols on it?"

Sam tossed a glance to O'Neill, but the stranger before them all at once seemed to realize what it was the Colonel spoke of. His blue eyes went wide, and then he put his bow and arrow away and bowed low.

Sam and Jack looked at each other uneasily; Teal'c raised one eyebrow in question.

The man straightened again, motioning for his men to lower their arrows. "I see now how you can speak the language of Belegrandir," he said. "And I welcome you, Colonel Jack O'Neill of Earth, and your companions, to the land of Ithilien. I am Barahir, son of Elboron, Steward of Gondor and Prince of Ithilien."

Sam lifted her eyebrows at the impressive title.

"Wow," Jack commented quietly. "Sounds important."

Barahir smiled briefly, but then his face became serious again. He looked over Sam's shoulder to the limp Daniel in Teal'c's arms. "I see you have one who is injured."

Sam nodded, but Jack stepped in front of her before she could reply.

"Yah. We were attacked by some big, ugly, smelly things. Look… we appreciate your welcome to Ilium, but we really need to be heading back to that big stone ring. We need to get our injured friend back to our realm so he can get help."

Barahir smiled sympathetically, shaking his head. "I am afraid you cannot do that."

"And… why not?" Jack asked slowly, feeling his fingers tighten around the grip of his rifle. Hospitable or not, he wasn't going to let these people get in the way of saving Daniel's life.

Barahir sighed heavily, casting a quick glance at the forest around them before answering. "Those creatures who attacked you, the Orcs… they attacked because they are looking for your… Stargate. They are always lurking around these parts… it would be too dangerous for you to leave now; you could lead them to it. They will be watching."

"Watching what?" Sam asked.

"You," Barahir replied. "They watch even now. I can feel their evil gaze upon my back. Can you not feel it also?"

Jack paused a moment, listening, smelling, "feeling", but he could detect nothing out of the ordinary. He started to wonder if this Barahir guy might have a few screws loose… "Sorry," he said aloud into the sudden quiet, "I don't feel anything."

"Yet they are near," Barahir insisted. "It is not safe here. You must come with me. This way." He turned on his heel, walking toward the North. The other cloaked strangers stood waiting, watching the SG-1 team expectantly.

Jack stared after the man, not liking this idea. He didn't yet know if these people were really "friendlies" or not. For all he knew this could be some kind of trap. But the other strangers around him didn't look to be the patient type, and Jack didn't really want to run into any more of those ugly creatures while Daniel was still incapacitated and Teal'c's shooting arm was unavailable. He sighed, shrugging helplessly at Sam's curious look, and began to trail in Barahir's footsteps.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Carter asked quietly once they were on their way.

O'Neill shrugged again. "I don't know," he answered, trying to keep his voice low. "But I don't think we have much of a choice given the circumstances."

"Sir, what about Daniel?"

Jack's brow furrowed. "Right." He took a breath, then called up to Barahir at the front of the party, "Hey! We still have a hurt man back here, you know. He needs medical attention as soon as possible! Like right_ now_."

"You have no reason to worry, _daug-randir_," the man said over his shoulder. "Your friend is only sleeping; he is in no danger of death. We will travel to the home of the elves. He can be healed there, and the rest of you will be safe from the Orcs for a time."

Jack frowned, his steps momentarily slowing as he processed what Barahir had said. He turned to Sam, who walked beside him. "Carter," he asked, "did that man just say something about _elves_?"

Sam nodded. "Yes sir."

"Oh boy." Jack took off his baseball cap, ran a hand through his graying hair, and then pulled the cap over his head again. "Now I _know_ these people are nuts."

"Barahir?" Sam called out suddenly. "Pardon me for asking, but… how do you know Daniel is only sleeping? How do you know he hasn't been poisoned with something that could kill him?"

Barahir turned to look over his shoulder again, his face grave. "The same thing that has happened to your friend has happened to my people many times. We are quite accustomed to the venom those Orcs use to poison their arrows. I can not discuss it now, but when we reach our destination I will tell you more. We have many things to talk about between us."

Colonel O'Neill snorted derisively, looking around at the woods they walked through to try and locate markers by which he might eventually find his way back with. "You got that right," he muttered.

* * *

Thoth looked up from the old and weathered parchment resting in his lap as the double doors leading to his audience chamber opened. He rolled the parchment quickly and stood from his throne, drawing himself up to his full six feet, five inches, and sighed irritably as his chief scout entered the room. The tallish, broad shouldered creature bowed before the wizard and then straightened, waiting for permission to speak.

Thoth nodded, wondering what would cause Gurtog to risk disturbing his Lord.

"My Lord," the Orc began, his guttural voice forming the Westron words with ease and speaking fast. "We have spotted strangers in the South… We believe they may have knowledge of the _Rind i Galad_."

Thoth felt a shock of disbelief course through him, his spine stiffening and holding him rigid. His crystal blue eyes flashed at his subordinate as he asked the question, "How long ago were they seen?"

The Orc shifted uncomfortably. "Not long ago, my Lord. We tried to capture them but they evaded us."

"They evaded you?" Thoth's fist tightened around the roll of parchment. "Explain yourself."

Gurtog bowed his head; swallowing visibly. "They carried strange weapons and wore armor such as I have never seen before. Their weapons killed half of my regiment by the time we could retreat. But we followed them, my Lord, in hopes of having another chance to ambush them. They were met by the Steward of Gondor… and I heard them talking…. My Lord, the strangers speak the language of Belegrandir! And they mentioned the _Rind i Galad_, but they used your name for it, my Lord. They called it… the Stargate."

Thoth felt his heartbeat quicken, the blood rushing past his ears. How could this be? After all his endless years of searching… could these strangers be the answer to all his troubles? Could it really be so easy? "How many of them were there?" he asked the scout, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I counted four of them, my Lord," Gurtog answered. "Three males, one female. One of the males went down under our arrows, but we were unable to get to him. The other three took him with them when they moved on."

A sudden sense of urgency gripped the wizard. "Where are they now?" he asked eagerly. "I hope for your sake you did not leave them alone to wonder the forest?"

"No," Gurtog assured him quickly. "No, my Lord. I left the other scouts behind to track them. But I did not wish to act further until I had informed you of their presence..."

Thoth smiled. "Very good. This is indeed good news, Gurtog. Continue to track these strangers. See if they return to the Stargate. If they do, you will report back to me immediately with the location. If they do not return to the Stargate by the close of this day, do whatever is necessary to capture them, but I want at least one of them alive. The information they carry could be very, very useful."

Gurtog nodded obediently and then, after bowing low to the wizard, the Orc turned and exited the room, closing the doors behind him.

Thoth eased back down into his chair, a broad smile spreading across his face as he unfurled the ancient parchment in his lap once more and studied the map that had long ago been drawn on its surface. He had marked off many areas of this continent over the years, keeping careful track of the places his men had or hadn't searched. His eyes now drifted south. A great portion of that country was yet unsearched, but after this most recent news Thoth determined to change that immediately.

If these newcomers were in fact who Gurtog thought them to be...

Thoth's smile widened even more, bearing his teeth in a feral grin. _They will lead me to the 'Gate at last_, he thought gleefully. _I will at last have my freedom. I will at last have the means to seek my revenge..._

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

**_Notes:_**

_Daug-randir:_ Sindarin Elvish "warrior-wanderer"

_Rind i Galad: _Sindarin Elvish "Ring of Light"

_Cha'paa'ai:_ Abydonian word for the Stargate


	2. Questions

**Parallels**

**Chapter Two: Questions**

Sam ignored the sweat spreading between her shoulder blades and running past her ears. She swiped an arm across her forehead and checked her watch, then wiped slick palms on her pants and shifted her grip on her gun. They had been walking for over an hour and still there had been no sign of civilization.

Daniel had shown no indication of waking up and Sam was starting to grow concerned. Teal'c, despite his incredible stamina, was beginning to tire, and she knew that having any other person carry Daniel's unconscious weight would only slow them down. That was something they could not afford; Sam wasn't quite ready to completely trust Barahir's assurances that the poison in Daniel was not dangerous. She would have much preferred getting him back to Dr. Frasier at Stargate Command, but apparently that was not an option.

Sam cast a cautious glance to the men who marched beside and behind her. They had been subtly watching her throughout the course of their walk, and Sam didn't think they trusted her any more then she trusted them. They kept their arrows notched, but Sam's trigger finger never left her trigger guard either.

She sighed impatiently, finally deciding Daniel couldn't wait any longer for her to say something. "Um, excuse me," she spoke out into the relative quiet, "how much longer until we get to where we're going? I don't like leaving our friend like this."

"Not far now," Barahir answered her easily. "We are almost there. Do not worry about your friend. He will sleep for a long time yet."

Sam pursed her lips at the comment but was glad to hear they were getting closer to their destination. The sooner they were able to get some answers from these people the better. And the sooner she was able to talk to someone with any kind of medical experience the better.

Despite the man's claim, they walked for another solid thirty minutes before Sam finally saw evidence of a settlement. The trees of the forest around them had been steadily growing taller and wider, but now there were wooden platforms built high into their branches, half hidden behind the full summer leaves. She craned her neck up to look at them, marveling at their construction. They were beautifully carved in intricate organic designs, somehow seeming both a part of the tree and separate from it. Every now and then Sam would catch a glimpse of a face moving among the leaves, but as soon as she saw them they would vanish again.

She kept her eyes upward as she walked, halfway expecting an ambush from above and holding her rifle close to her chest in preparation for quick fire. Teal'c abruptly stopped in front of her. Sam bumped into his back and rebounded, then stumbled to regain her balance.

The Jaffa looked over his shoulder, raising one eyebrow in question. Sam nodded her head upwards toward the trees almost imperceptibly, but Teal'c understood her meaning and gave her a subtle nod of his own in return.

A stream of foreign words drew Sam and Teal'c's attention and they both turned to the front to see another stranger talking with Barahir. This one also wore a bow and arrow, though he had not drawn the weapon, and had long, blond hair that he had braided in the back. Sam listened to their conversation with interest but the words were completely incomprehensible to her, and after a few moments she gave up, choosing instead to keep her attention on the trees and the people who occupied them.

At last Barahir turned around to face SG-1, a smile on his face. "Aglarion has agreed to take us to Prince Legolas. You may ask him for refuge and help for your friend. Come, this way." He motioned with his arm, but the blond man called Aglarion went first and then Barahir followed. Jack looked back at Sam, but she didn't know what to do except shrug. The three of them headed wearily after their guides, still surrounded by the ever-watchful eyes of the green-cloaked men.

After a short walk the team came to the base of particularly tall tree, and in its branches high above the ground a wide, round platform had been built. Aglarion motioned for them to stay put, and then he quickly trotted onto a winding ramp that spiraled up the trunk of the tree. Sam watched him go, her eyebrows rising as she realized how comfortable with heights these people must be. The ramp was narrow, and had no handrail, but the blond-haired man went nimbly up its length as casually as if he were running across a flat field. He reached the platform and disappeared out of view.

Sam sighed, dropping her eyes back to ground level. She was surprised to see that there were now many more of the forest people around them, although when they had appeared she didn't know. She hadn't heard any of them approach, yet now they stood all around the base of the tree, watching SG-1 in obvious curiosity and guarded suspicion. Sam searched them with her eyes, but she could see no weapons on any of them. They wore light robes or tunics and all of them had long, straight hair of brown or blond. Their eyes were disturbingly bright and piercing and Carter shifted uncomfortably under their endless scrutiny.

"Hello," Jack said suddenly into the relative silence. Sam turned to see him smiling and waving at the staring people, no doubt as uneasy as she was about their awkward position. "Nice to meet you folks. I'm Colonel O'Neill… this is Major Carter, Teal'c, and that's Daniel. We had a little run in with the Orcs, thought maybe you all could help us…"

The people looked to each other, then back to SG-1. Some murmured among themselves in the strange language, but none of them moved from their places.

The sound of quiet footsteps interrupted Jack's exchange and the three team members looked up again to see Aglarion coming back down the ramp with another blond-haired man behind him. The two descended swiftly from the tree, coming to stand before Barahir and the rest of the group. The unfamiliar one stepped forward, clasping Barahir's arm in a friendly grip. The two men grinned at each other.

"_Mae govannen, Barahir Elboronion_," the blond one said, still smiling.

Barahir bowed his head. "_Mae govannen, Legolas Thranduilion_," he returned.

Then the two men stepped apart, each bowing low to the other, one arm crossed over their chests. Sam watched the exchange, feeling a small bit of relief at the friendliness of it. She had half expected this Prince Legolas to be cold and expressionless, but in fact he seemed quite the opposite. He wore a simple tunic and pants outfit, much like the others', but the material of his tunic was colored ivory and shimmered with the iridescence of a pearl. The high collar and wide cuffs of the shirt had been intricately embroidered with some kind of leaf and vine motif, the same design that could be found etched around the front and top of his soft suede boots. His leggings were a dark brown, also made of suede leather, and upon his forehead rested a thin, silver circlet, which Sam guessed to be the outward sign of his sovereignty.

He turned to the team, bowing to them in the same manner as he had to Barahir. "Welcome to the land of Ithilien," he said, and Sam watched Jack's eyebrows shoot up at the sound of the heavily accented but wonderfully understandable English. "I am Legolas, son of Thranduil, Prince of Eryn Lasgalen and Lord of the Ithilien elves."

"I am… Colonel Jack O'Neill," the Colonel began, somewhat uncertainly. "And this is Major Carter, Teal'c, and Dr. Daniel Jackson. We're from Earth… we came through the Stargate, you know that big round ring…"

Prince Legolas nodded. "Yes, the _Rind i Galad_. Aglarion has told me this much. He said that you seek refuge and healing for your friend as well."

Jack nodded. "Yah… about that healing part… he's been unconscious for almost two hours now, do you think you could make that a first priority?"

"Of course." Legolas motioned to the one called Aglarion, speaking a few words in his native language, and Aglarion bowed low, then disappeared off into the trees. Legolas turned back to the team. "I must apologize for the nature of your reception. We did not receive your arrival message; otherwise we would have sent warriors to escort you. Their presence would have discouraged the attack."

Jack frowned, then glanced over his shoulder to Teal'c and Sam. He turned back to Legolas. "Arrival message?"

Confusion crossed the Prince's face briefly. "Yes," he replied slowly, "the arrival message we prearranged with Belegrandir long ago. Did you not send one?"

Colonel O'Neill took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "Um…no. We didn't exactly send a _message_. You see, before we go through the Stargate, we send a probe called a M.A.L.P. to make sure the other side is safe for us. So… we sent the M.A.L.P. through…"

There was a second of silence.

"Belegrandir did not mention this probe device to us. Did he not tell you of our prearranged arrival message?"

O'Neill hesitated. "Well…"

Sam stepped forward, going to Jack's side. "Excuse me, Your Highness-"

"Please, address me as Legolas."

"Legolas," Sam corrected herself, "we… don't really know who this Belegrandir is. I mean we may speak his language, but truthfully… we've never met him before, we've never even heard of him. We never knew about any arrival message. Sorry."

Legolas looked at them for a quiet moment. "I see. Yet you say you are from the realm of Earth, correct?"

"Yes…" O'Neill answered.

"Belegrandir was also from Earth," Legolas said.

Sam's eyes widened in surprise and she looked to Jack in question. But the Colonel shook his head. She turned to the Prince once again. "Are you sure?" she blurted.

A small smile hinted at the corners of Legolas' mouth. "Yes. I am quite certain. It was he who taught us the language of your people. In return we taught him several of our own languages. Since he left our world, those of us in leadership have made sure to pass on the knowledge of your language to those who would come after us, so that if Belegrandir or others of his realm came to us again, we would be able to communicate with them effectively."

"What a good idea," Jack commented.

Legolas dipped his head in acknowledgement.

Sam opened her mouth to ask another question, but just at that moment Aglarion returned with three other elves, two of them carrying a stretcher made of a large piece of leather lashed between two wooden poles. The third was a female, and her eyes went immediately to Daniel. From the way her brows drew together in concern Sam knew at once she was the healer. Sam had seen that evaluative look cross Dr. Frasier's face many times.

Legolas turned to face the arriving group. "Ah, yes." He gestured toward the female elf. "This is Fealglîr, our Master Healer. She has spent many years in Rivendell and was apprentice to Lord Elrond himself. She will be sure to take good care of your friend."

The stretcher was brought over to Teal'c and the Jaffa carefully lowered Daniel's prone form onto it. The two elves then lifted it, and Fealglîr followed them as they moved off again into the woods. Aglarion remained behind, taking up a space beside Legolas and clasping his hands behind his back.

Carter took a step after the healer and her aides, then looked to the Colonel. "Sir… shouldn't someone go with him?"

Jack looked to Legolas, lifting his eyebrows.

"Although it is not necessary, you are welcome to accompany him if you wish," the Prince told them.

Sam nodded in response and started after the stretcher again, but Jack stopped her with a hand on her arm. "Carter, wait. I'll go with Daniel. You stay here and ask questions."

"But sir-"

"Just do it, Carter. You're better at these things then I am."

Sam sighed, then nodded. "Yes sir."

Jack squeezed her arm, glanced to Teal'c, and then jogged after the elves and Daniel. In only a short time they had disappeared behind the endless trunks of trees. Carter took a deep breath and faced Legolas. She forced a smile to her lips, trying to mask her worry. "Well," she said, "there are a few other things we'd like to ask you, if you don't mind?"

Legolas gave another nod, reminding Sam distinctly of the way Teal'c often bobbed his head in affirmation. "Of course. Let us go somewhere where you may be more comfortable." He motioned toward the winding ramp that led to the platform high above.

* * *

Teal'c and Sam soon found themselves seated on large cushions on the floor of the platform. Legolas sat cross-legged on another cushion directly across from them, despite the fact there was a chair and small table available in the corner. Aglarion had escorted the three of them to the top of the ramp, but then at Legolas' bidding he retreated again, leaving them alone.

Sam unhooked her P-90 from the tactical harness strapped around her chest and set the rifle on the floor behind her, attempting to convey the fact they truly were _peaceful_ explorers. She cast a sideways glance to Teal'c, and reluctantly he also placed his staff weapon behind him.

"You said that Belegrandir was from Earth?" she asked, unsure of how else to begin. She found herself wishing again that the Colonel had not put her in charge of this discussion. While she knew she was probably more capable of handling first contact situations then he was, given his outspoken manner, she also knew she was not as capable – or as patient – as Daniel. She just hoped she wasn't about to ruin any of the diplomatic progress Belegrandir had already made… whoever he was.

"Yes," Legolas answered her, snapping her out of her thoughts. "That is the realm he claimed to be from."

"But he's not still here?"

"No. He left many years ago."

Sam frowned, trying to remember if another team had been to this planet already. But no matter how hard she thought, as far as she knew, SG-1 was the first and only SGC team to ever come to PT2-571. She wondered if her team hadn't been told something… but that seemed unlikely. "When exactly did he come here?" she asked.

"He arrived in the third year of the Fourth Age and stayed for one and one half years before he was able to decipher the symbols on the _Rind i Galad_ well enough to go home again."

"So he came through the Stargate and then couldn't dial home," Sam said, more to herself then to Legolas. She frowned. That would mean Belegrandir was most likely _not _a member of Stargate Command.

"I'm sorry," the Prince said, "I am not familiar with what you call a Stargate?"

Sam looked up to him, as if just remembering he was there again. "Oh, I'm sorry… Stargate is our word for the _Rind i Galad_." She grimaced as she stumbled over the pronunciation of the foreign word, but apparently she had said it well enough for the Prince to understand, because he nodded.

"Yes," Legolas continued. "In truth, Belegrandir wished to return to Earth immediately after arriving here, but he was unable to get the _Rind i Galad_ to function properly. He said our star formations were different from his own, and that made it difficult for him to find the sequence that would lead him back to his home."

Sam lifted her eyebrows in surprise. "So… you know how the… _Rind i Galad_ … works then?"

"A few of us do," Legolas replied. "Once Belegrandir and my people understood each other, he explained to us the workings of the great ring in the hopes that we might be able to aid him in getting back to his own realm. But since his departure, those of us who know how to use it have been very wary of sharing the knowledge with anyone else."

Teal'c raised one eyebrow at the statement and Carter agreed with the Jaffa.

"Why?"

Legolas' bright blue eyes fell to his lap momentarily before rising again to meet Carter's gaze. When he spoke again his voice was low and quiet, as if he were afraid someone else would overhear. "Shortly after the _Rind i Galad_ was brought to this land, the Orcs and other such vile creatures began to attack and kidnap mine and Barahir's people. Recently, those who serve evil have grown bolder and more frequent in their attacks. They have even begun to penetrate our borders, which they have never dared to do before the start of this year. We have learned from those we've captured that they are searching for the _Rind i Galad_, though for what purpose we have yet to discover. The fewer of our people who possess knowledge of the ring's function the better, for then they can give nothing away if they are captured by the enemy."

Sam felt a small tremor of trepidation roll through her stomach and she had to force herself to ask her next question. "Legolas… these Orcs… do they serve someone who claims to be a god?"

The Prince frowned, then shook his head, causing a long lock of golden hair to fall across his shoulder. "No. We believe their leader to be a wizard known as Romestamo, but that is more rumor then fact. It is hard to discern what is a truth and what is a lie when it comes to the Orcs, I'm afraid."

Sam nodded absently, then looked to Teal'c. The Jaffa fixed the Prince with a steady stare.

"Do you know why this wizard might be looking for the Stargate?" Teal'c asked, the first words he had spoken to these strangers.

Legolas did not fidget beneath Teal'c's scrutinizing gaze like most others did; instead the Prince met the Jaffa's eyes evenly. "We assume he wishes to use it to his own ends, perhaps as a means of increasing his power and influence. It has long been known that Romestamo seeks dominion over this world… we fear that if he finds the _Rind i Galad_, it would only be a matter of time before his plan succeeds."

Sam chewed the inside of her lip, trying to make sense of things, but it seemed the more questions she asked the more confused she became. According to Legolas, Romestamo did not maintain that he was a god, and yet the other aspects of his character sounded much like those of a Goa'uld, especially if the wizard really was the one looking for the Stargate. Unless… "Legolas," she said, "what if this Romestamo just wants to leave? To go somewhere else?"

But the elf shook his head immediately. "We do not believe that is his intention."

"Why not?"

This time Legolas hesitated before answering. "In the past, the _Rind i Galad_ has been in the possession of evil, and in turn it brought only evil things into our world. If the Orcs truly are in the service of Romestamo, then he too has turned evil at heart. If he only wished for escape, why would he be kidnapping our people?"

Sam dropped her eyes to her hands, opening her mouth to reply. But before she could think of a reasonable answer to the Prince's question there were shadows in the doorway, and she looked up to see Colonel O'Neill standing at the threshold, flanked by Aglarion and Barahir.

"Carter, Teal'c," Jack greeted, ducking through the opening and crossing the floor to the offered cushion. Aglarion and Barahir remained standing, taking up positions just inside the door.

"What'd I miss?"

Sam blinked, trying to think of a good way to sum up all the information Legolas had given them in the last few minutes. "Um… a lot, sir," she said finally, giving him a rueful look. "How's Daniel?"

Jack shrugged. "I think that elf doctor fixed him up pretty good. But he's still sleeping. They had a room for him a few trees south of here, apparently they will tell us just as soon as he wakes up."

Sam nodded, though inwardly she still wished they could get Daniel back to Dr. Frasier for a proper examination…

"So what did we find out about this Belegrandir guy?" O'Neill asked, looking in turn from Legolas, to Carter, to Teal'c, and then back again.

Sam took a deep breath and cleared her throat. "Well sir… we know that he was from Earth, and that he was here for a year and a half before he left again. He was also the one who taught the people of Ithilien how the Stargate works."

The Colonel waited. "And…? That's all?"

Sam sighed. "Well-"

"Major Carter and I may have discovered something that requires a more immediate investigation," Teal'c spoke up, coming to Carter's aid. She tossed him an appreciative glance.

"Oh really?" Jack asked, his brow furrowing in mock surprise. "Something more intriguing then a guy from Earth showing up before the SGC's team and teaching elves how to use the Stargate?"

Teal'c merely lifted one eyebrow, then continued, undaunted. "There may be a Goa'uld on this planet," he said.

This time the Colonel's eyes widened in true disbelief. "What?"

"And if it is a Goa'uld," Carter went on, "it doesn't know where the Stargate is. It's stuck here."

Jack stared at his second-in-command for a long moment, trying to absorb the full meaning of such a revelation. In the doorway Barahir and Aglarion looked to each other in confusion.

At last Legolas broke the lingering silence. "I apologize once more, but I am afraid I do not understand the meaning of your words. Could you explain to us the term _Goa'uld_?"

O'Neill exhaled slowly through his nose. "Ah, yes" he muttered, "The Goa'uld. What can we tell you about the Goa'uld?" He turned abruptly toward Teal'c. "Teal'c, would you care to explain to these lovely people who the Goa'uld are? I think your unique perspective on the matter makes you the authority on this subject."

Teal'c inclined his head in agreement, then began a brief description of the Goa'uld and their rather nasty habits.

Sam watched the three natives of PT2-571 listen in rapt attention as Teal'c spoke and mentally shook her head. This mission was turning into one hell of a trip.

* * *

Daniel first became aware of quiet singing; a gentle voice that rose and fell with a beautiful melody, and though he could not understand the words he felt distinctly more peaceful and relaxed when he listened to them. A slight breeze blew across his face, cool and fresh with the smells of a summer evening, and instinctively he drew in a deep breath. He exhaled slowly, pulling his eyes open and blinking groggily.

He squinted at his slightly blurred surroundings, automatically reaching to his left to grope for his glasses. To his surprise he found them resting on a nearby nightstand and he put them on carefully, wincing at the sharp pain that raced through his right bicep when he moved his arm. His left hand went to cover the sore spot and he frowned as he felt the bandage there. He didn't remember being hurt…

The soft singing stopped abruptly. Subtle footsteps padded over to his side and suddenly Daniel looked up into the beautiful face of a young woman. Her hair was long and rich brown and fell over her shoulders in thick cascades. Her eyes were a clear blue color and her lips parted in a bright smile as she saw he was awake.

"_Echuivennech_," she said lightly, sounding relieved.

Daniel raised his eyebrows at her words, immediately trying to compare the phrase to all the languages he had studied and knew well enough to have a strong vocabulary in, but he could come up with no matches and the dialect was unfamiliar.

She leaned forward, placing a firm palm against his forehead, and Daniel smiled at her as she withdrew her hand. "Yes, I feel much better now, thank you." He looked around the room, abruptly realizing Jack, Sam, and Teal'c were nowhere to be found. The room appeared to be at some height off the ground and had only half walls extending around the sides. The rest of the wall was left open to the outside, with only four posts – one at each corner - reaching up to the wooden ceiling above. He marveled at the architecture and wished he could remember more of how he got to this place. At least the people seemed friendly… he opened his mouth to ask the woman if she had seen his friends, but just at that moment she got up and moved across the room to retrieve a glass and pitcher sitting on a small table by the entry way.

She came back to his bedside, pouring the glass full of water from the pitcher. "_Nen_?" she asked, holding the cup out to him.

Daniel peered at her, still trying to place the language, but at last he gave up and simply nodded. He pushed himself up into a sitting position with his good arm and accepted the cup from her. "Thank you," he told her.

She gave a nod in return and Daniel put the cup to his lips, not realizing how thirsty he really was until he took the first sip. He drained the cup swiftly and the woman refilled it for him. He gulped the second cup and then handed the glass back to her, signaling that he did not want more with his hand. She gave another nod and placed the pitcher and glass back on the table.

Daniel cleared his throat, rubbing the fingers of his left hand over the bandage again absently. "Um… listen…" he began, but the woman didn't give him time to speak.

"_Daro,"_ she said, motioning for him to stay. "_Tegithan vellyn lín_." With that she turned and trotted through the gap in the walls that was the door, vanishing away below, her footsteps quickly fading.

"Hey, wait, excuse me…" But she was gone. Daniel groaned, rubbing his eyes beneath his glasses with his good hand. He sighed heavily, leaning back against the finely carved headboard. He glanced out to the tree branches again, realizing consciously for the first time that it was night and only moonlight and a single lantern hanging from the ceiling lit the room. He checked his watch and was shocked to see it had been eight hours since they had first come through the 'Gate. He wondered if the others had managed to check in with General Hammond; wondered if they were somewhere nearby or if he had been taken to this place alone. He _hoped_ he wasn't alone here… even if the people seemed friendly…

With a start Daniel realized he no longer wore his uniform t-shirt and jacket. Instead his upper half was clad in a beautifully embroidered, short-sleeved tunic that felt as if it were made of the finest silk. He touched the shimmering material gingerly, wondering what kind of thread could create something so soft. He looked around the room again and found his t-shirt, jacket, vest, and belt neatly folded in a pile next to his boots in one corner. His weapons and weapons' holsters were nowhere to be found.

Daniel lifted an eyebrow, throwing back the covers of the bed and swinging his feet over the side. He stood up slowly, carefully, leaning back against the side of the bed as a wave of dizziness made the floor rock. He closed his eyes for a second, then opened them again as the faintness passed. He wished he could remember how he had gotten here, or how he had hurt his arm, but everything short of first starting off from the 'Gate was too foggy to recall details.

He went to one of the room's half walls, putting a hand on the railing and looking down over the side. His eyes widened as he saw how tall the tree really was, but then movements on the ground below drew his attention. He watched several robed figures walk slowly along a narrow path between the trees, talking among themselves. In the stillness of the night Daniel could barely make out the sound of their words, but he could not understand them. He recognized the language as the same his caretaker had used, but he still couldn't identify it.

The shadowy silhouettes passed beneath his tree and Daniel moved away from the wall, looking around his room aimlessly for a moment. The woman had acted like she had wanted him to stay here, but Daniel's inquisitive nature could not be restrained. He hesitated only a second longer before making up his mind and leaving the bedroom.

He walked barefoot down a sloping ramp of cool, smooth wood, trying not to put much thought into how far above the ground he was. He looked out at the trees around him, noticing most of them had similar rooms and platforms like the tree he was now in, all of which were connected by narrow, arching bridges. A few of the rooms had lanterns lit within them, but at the moment the tree directly ahead drew most of Daniel's attention. It held a huge platform, bigger then any of the others he could see, and was brightly lit with both candles and lanterns. He headed in that direction, eager to see if he could find out more about these people.

He rounded a curve in the ramp only to crash into another body, the force of the collision throwing him backwards. He landed hard, staring up at the leafy canopy above him in bewilderment.

"Daniel?" a familiar, irritated voice asked, and the archaeologist sat up only to see Colonel O'Neill looking down at him with a displeased expression. Sam and Teal'c stood behind Jack and off to the side was the woman who had given Daniel water and another man he didn't recognize.

"Jack?"

The Colonel rubbed his jaw where Daniel's forehead had bruised it. "Fer cryin' out loud… don't you watch where you're going?"

The woman beside Jack said something in her native tongue, shaking her head, and the unfamiliar man translated. "She says you should not be out of your bed, Daniel Jackson. She says she told you to wait and she would bring your friends to you."

Daniel accepted Jack's hand up with his left hand and brushed himself off. He tossed a glance to the woman and then to the man, then turned to Jack, shrugging guiltily. "Well I… couldn't understand her," he told them, thinking that should have been obvious.

"Nice shirt," Jack commented.

"What? Oh, yah…" Daniel looked down at the shimmering tunic again and plucked a few spare specks of dirt off of it. "It's nice. Comfortable too." He cleared his throat, scratching the back of his head. "Um, Jack… where are we?"

"Well we're not in Kansas anymore, Toto."

Daniel didn't appreciate the joke and crossed his arms over his chest, giving the Colonel a look.

Jack ignored it. "While you were so conveniently napping we met up with this fellow here," he gestured to the man Daniel didn't recognize and the man stepped forward, bowing low as he folded an arm across his chest.

"I am Barahir, son of Elboron," the man introduced himself. "Prince of Ithilien and Steward of Gondor. It is good to see you well again, Daniel Jackson."

Daniel returned the man's bow with a short, awkward one of his own. "It is an honor to meet you," he said, but in the back of his mind something bothered him about this man's title, and he couldn't think of what it was. "Obviously you already know who I am…" he straightened, looking around at the trees again. "So… this is your… kingdom?" he asked uncertainly, not sure how someone could be both a Prince and a Steward at the same time.

Barahir smiled warmly. "No. This is not." The man opened his arms to encompass the forest around them. "You are in the land of Ithilien, but this place is the home of the Silvan elves and of Legolas, Prince of Eryn Lasgalen."

Daniel frowned, sure he had hit his head harder then he had originally thought. "Excuse me, did you say… _elves_?"

"Exactly what I thought," Jack murmured.

"Indeed," Barahir replied. "We brought you here to be healed. Your companions were convinced you were on the verge of death, but I knew the kind of poison you had been afflicted with. My people have seen it many times."

"Um… yah, about that…" Daniel said, rubbing the back of his neck, "I don't really remember what happened…"

Jack smiled, clapping Daniel on the shoulder and ushering him along the ramp toward the massive, brightly lit platform ahead. "You missed out on a lot, Dannyboy. Come on, we'll fill you in on the way."

"On the way to where?" Daniel asked, still feeling helplessly overwhelmed by all that he was hearing and seeing.

"Dinner, of course," Jack answered cheerfully. "Barahir says these elves really know how to cook."

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *

Notes:

_Mae govannen:_ Sindarin Elvish, "Well met", a greeting.

_-ion_ suffix: Sindarin, "son of."

_Echuivennech:_ Sindarin, "You have awakened."

_Nen:_ Sindarin, "Water."

_Daro:_ Sindarin, "Wait."

_Tegithan vellyn lín:_ Sindarin, "I will bring your friends."


	3. A Very Long Night

**Parallels**

**Chapter Three: A Very Long Night**

Within half an hour SG-1 sat on cushions around a massive wooden table, and Daniel had received the full account of everything that had happened since he'd fallen unconscious. Barahir and Daniel's healer, who he had learned was called Fealglîr, had left shortly before to go prepare themselves for the meal, and the four humans from Earth were left on their own for a time. The night insects were the only sound in the silence as Daniel struggled to register everything he'd just been told.

"So…" he said after a few quiet moments, "we can't go back to the 'Gate?"

"Not without risking another ambush," Carter replied. "According to what we've been told so far, the Orcs have been searching for the 'Gate for years now. The elves have managed to hide it from them so far, but they say the Orcs are getting increasingly violent and aggressive."

"Of course, the only reason we didn't try to go back anyway was because you were hurt," Jack said. "Those Orcs have arrows. We have guns. I think we've got the advantage."

"They have arrows with _poison_ on them," Daniel reminded him.

Colonel O'Neill shrugged. "We'll be ready for 'em next time."

"Oh. Well that makes me feel lots better," Daniel muttered.

"What would you rather do? Stay here forever?"

"Well, no… but we should at least find out more about these Orcs before we go out inviting them to attack us. I mean, does anyone know _why_ these Orcs have been looking for the 'Gate all this time? They must have some kind of motive, some sort of reason…?"

"Because of the wizard," Jack quipped matter-of-factly.

Daniel stared at him.

"A being these people refer to as a wizard is the determined leader of the creatures called Orcs," Teal'c offered. "It seems he has been the one organizing the searches for the 'Gate for many years now."

"Does this wizard have a name?" Daniel asked, already searching for clues that might connect PT2-571 to Earth in some way, or perhaps something that might link them to the Goa'uld.

"They call him Romestamo," Carter filled in.

"Ring any bells?" O'Neill asked.

Daniel thought for a second, wishing he had access to his books or the Internet to double-check his memory. But after a while he shook his head. "No. At least it's not Egyptian, and off the top of my head I can't think of any other god in any other culture called Romestamo."

"Well they do call him a _wizard_, and not a god," Jack prompted.

Daniel looked at the Colonel from beneath his brows. "Yes. But the term "wizard" implies one who has magical powers. That's a little… different."

"They have _elves_ here for Pete's sake," Jack sputtered. "What's unusual about a wizard when you've got lots of pointy eared people living in trees all over the place?"

"Perhaps what concerns Daniel Jackson is why this wizard would appear so eager to acquire access to the Stargate," Teal'c suggested.

Daniel nodded. "Right, yes. Thank you, Teal'c."

Jack rolled his eyes. "Daniel, our report to General Hammond is two hours overdue. If we don't get some kind of message back to him he's going to send another team through looking for us, and I don't know about you, but I'd rather not expose any more SGC personnel to those poisoned arrows. Especially since they won't know what they're getting into when they step out of that 'Gate. We're going to have to go back there eventually, and it'll have to be sooner then later."

"Jack-"

"Daniel." The Colonel's voice carried the familiar warning edge to it, making it clear he was the one in charge and he had already made up his mind.

The archaeologist looked down to the finely carved wooden dishes set at the place before him and took a deep breath, drumming his fingers on the tabletop in frustration. "At least let me talk to someone before we go and see if I can find out more about Romestamo and these Orcs."

"Find out how we can get back to the 'Gate tonight," the Colonel instructed.

Daniel's eyebrows rose in disbelief. "Excuse me?"

"We'll radio General Hammond and see what he wants us to do. If he wants us to stay here and investigate then you can do all the talking to the elves you want. If not, we'll go home. End of story."

Daniel opened his mouth to protest again but just at that moment the sound of approaching feet reached them, and all four of them looked toward the platform entrance in unison.

Two long rows of elves entered, each carrying a large dish or plate of food. Silently the elves split around the table, putting each dish in its proper place, arranging things on the table so that it somehow all fit. The last eight elves each carried rather large jugs, and Daniel wondered what was in them until they were uncorked and the contents poured into the goblets set at each place.

Wine.

Daniel leaned back to make room for the elf to fill his glass, still agape at the amount of food that had been crammed onto what now looked like a much smaller table.

O'Neill let out a soft whistle as his goblet filled with the fragrant, plum-colored liquid. "Barahir wasn't joking," he said quietly, echoing Daniel's thoughts exactly.

But then the food-bringers and wine-pourers were gone as suddenly as they had appeared, and the four team members looked at each other.

"What now?" Jack whispered.

Daniel was saved from replying by the sound of more footsteps, and then the guests of the feast finally arrived. Men and elves both filed through the entryway, most finely adorned in robes, gowns, and cloaks. Barahir gave the team a reassuring smile as he went to stand behind the cushion next to Carter. Fealglîr entered next and came around the other side of the table to stand at the cushion next to Daniel. The archaeologist glanced to her briefly, then did a double take as he noticed the delicately tapered points of her ears for the first time. He squinted at her, finally realizing she had put half of her hair back into a braid. That's why he had not noticed she was an elf before - her hair had been covering her ears.

He turned his attention back to the others coming in. Now that he looked more closely, Daniel realized there were several different ways to tell the men and elves apart besides the difference in the clothes and the cartilage of the ear. The elves seemed generally taller, and most were of slighter build then the men, although they did not look any less strong for it. There was something in their faces; something in the way their eyes shone, in the way they moved, that spoke of a great inner dignity and grace, an ancient nobility that Daniel could not quite place…

He snapped out of his wonderings as he noticed everyone remained standing behind their cushions except for him and the rest of SG-1. He quickly got to his feet, standing next to his cushion like the other guests who had just arrived, and cleared his throat loudly. To his relief Carter got his hint and also stood, and shortly after Jack and Teal'c followed her motion.

The last guest to enter was a tall, blond elf wearing elaborate robes of a pale blue color. Atop his forehead rested a finely crafted silver headband. He stood by the cushion at the far end of the table, looking across the long length of food and drink to smile at Jack and the rest of SG-1. Daniel shifted on his feet as the elf's blue eyes came to rest on him.

"Doctor Daniel Jackson. I am glad you have recovered enough to join us for this meal. I am Prince Legolas, Lord of the Ithilien Elves, and I welcome you to our home."

Daniel nodded. "Yes, thank you. Thank you for all of your help. We really appreciate it... all of it." He tossed a glance to Jack but the Colonel was ignoring him. Daniel tried to keep his frustration in check. It wasn't worth it. It just wasn't worth it…

Legolas gave a short bow in response to Daniel's comments. Then his gaze moved to include all those gathered around the table. "This feast is to celebrate the arrival of friends. In the tradition of Belegrandir, may we continue to learn from each other and help each other." The elves and men around the table bowed low in agreement, and Daniel followed their movements. Carter, Teal'c and Colonel O'Neill likewise echoed his.

Then Legolas settled himself on his cushion, and at once there was a buzz of talk as everyone else also sat down and began to pass around the wealth of food and drink.

* * *

An hour and a half later Daniel was just finishing his third glass of wine and swore to himself he had never been so full. Barahir had spoken the truth when he'd said the elves knew how to cook. The smoked bird and other forest game were unbelievably tender and moist. The massive helpings of fresh and cooked vegetables included, to his surprise, many of the foods on Earth: corn, cucumbers, lettuce, carrots, zucchini, peas, green beans, onions, and cabbage. There were also two types of bread, one light and one dark, and then there was the fruit. Apples, oranges, pears, plums, peaches, apricots, and some things that resembled mangos and starfruit had been piled high into their bowls. He had stuffed himself on everything – apparently being unconscious for eight hours straight made one very hungry… and thirsty.

An elf appeared out of nowhere; just as one had the other two times Daniel had emptied his goblet, and refilled his glass for the fourth time. Daniel sighed deeply, thinking he was going to sleep very, very well tonight. He took a sip of his freshly poured wine, glancing around at the plates of his teammates. All of them had managed to put away a considerable amount of food, and most of them had put away a fair amount of wine as well. Everyone except Teal'c, whose first glass still sat, untouched. But Teal'c had never taken so much as a sip of alcohol for as long as Daniel had known him. The archaeologist just hoped the elves wouldn't be offended by the Jaffa's refusal of their drink… he hoped that he, Jack, and Sam had drunk enough of it to make up for Teal'c, at least.

A touch on his arm drew his attention to his right, and Jack leaned in to speak quietly in Daniel's ear. "Better slow down, Dannyboy. We have to get to the 'Gate tonight, remember? And you know you can't handle your alcohol."

Daniel exhaled irritably through his nose, swallowing his mouthful of wine as he set the goblet down leisurely next to his plate. "Jack," he said slowly, trying to choose his words carefully, "I don't think we should-"

"Daniel, don't argue. We have to get a message back to General Hammond tonight. So if you could please ask our hosts how to get there…," he pushed the words through his teeth, "that would be most helpful."

Daniel gave the Colonel a squinted glare, unable to help himself. "Can I at least wait until dinner's over?" he asked, the words sharp and clipped despite his efforts.

"No." If Jack had noticed Daniel's tone he'd chosen to ignore it. "We're running out of time. Look, if you don't want to ask them I'll do it-"

"No," Daniel cut in immediately. Ever since Jack had referred to saving the Asgard's "little gray butts" to the face of the Asgard High Council, Daniel had vowed never to let Jack handle any kind of diplomatic talks ever again. "I'll do it."

"Ah, good man."

Daniel rolled his eyes, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He cleared his throat and stood from his cushion, feeling only slightly uncomfortable as all twenty-some pairs of eyes turned in his direction.

"Um…" he began uncertainly, "I just wanted to say, on behalf of myself and my friends, thank you for your hospitality. We really appreciate it… _I_ really appreciate it… I certainly feel much better than I did a few hours ago…." He glanced down to Fealglîr and she returned his look with a smile, although Daniel had a good idea that she had no clue what he was saying. He turned his attention back to Prince Legolas. "But I'm afraid we really do need to get back to the Stargate as soon as possible."

Barahir and Legolas both shifted on their cushions. The Prince got to his feet, tucking his hands inside the voluminous sleeves of his robe, regarding Daniel seriously with his bright blue eyes. "I have been told your friends informed you of the dangers inherent in returning to your… Stargate?" the elf asked.

Daniel nodded, this time briefly glancing down to Jack, who gave him an almost imperceptible nod of encouragement. "Yes. They have."

"Then you know that the soonest we could escort you back would be in the morning. Is this not suitable enough?"

Daniel hesitated; hating to feel rude but knowing he had no other choice at the moment. "Well… no," he confessed at last, but then hurried to explain. "We need to send a message to our leader. We were supposed to send a message hours ago, and if we don't get one through the Stargate soon our leader will send more people through to look for us."

Legolas' brows drew together. "I see," he said slowly. "This is ill news indeed. The Orcs hate the sunlight and rarely hunt during the day -"

"That didn't seem to stop them from attacking us," O'Neill commented.

Legolas nodded. "I assume the sight of your unfamiliar armor and weapons drew them out of hiding. They would have been very anxious to question anyone who appeared to be a foreigner. Which is why you must not go to the great ring tonight. They will be waiting for you to return there, for night is their favorite time of day, and they can see better and move better in the solid darkness than any human. Without doubt you would be ambushed, and we cannot risk that."

Jack straightened up upon his cushion, opening his mouth to make some argument presumably in defense of human night vision, but Daniel signaled him to be quiet with a subtle wave of his hand.

"Our leader _will_ send more people through if we cannot get a message to him," Daniel reminded the Prince, "if he hasn't sent someone through already. Wouldn't the Orcs ambush them as well?"

Legolas pursed his lips, his face grim. "Indeed they would. As soon as your friends emerged from our circle of enchantment they would be visible to the Orcs, and undoubtedly fall under attack."

"Then we should start out now so that won't happen," the Colonel put in, but Daniel ignored him.

"Wait a minute," the archaeologist said, peering at Legolas, "you said… _circle of enchantment_?"

"Yes. I believe that would be the correct term in your language."

Daniel waited, but as Legolas offered nothing more he prodded, "What is that, exactly?"

Legolas drew in a deep breath. "It is the area in which the _Rind i Galad_ is hidden. We have enchanted the ring and a circle of forest around it so that no Orc may see it."

There was a silence while the SG team tried to absorb this new information.

"You mean… its invisible?" Jack asked.

Legolas nodded again. "That is an acceptable way to put it."

Jack frowned. "But… _we_ could see it…"

Legolas canted his head slightly to one side. "You are not an Orc."

The Colonel pondered this. "True. But, uh… how exactly does this whole 'enchanted' thing work?"

The Prince hesitated, but then shook his head. "I do not think you would be able to understand it, and I could not properly translate it."

"Ah."

Daniel could tell from Jack's tone that the Colonel did not completely accept this answer, but at least he didn't press the matter. Probably because there were other things to worry about at the moment. Like how they were going to get a message to Hammond and prevent another team from coming through when the way to the 'Gate was prowled by those horrid Orcs.

"There might be a solution to your dilemma," Legolas offered after a short pause, and all four pairs of SG-1 eyebrows lifted in question. "I could send a company of scouts to the _Rind i Galad_. The Orcs should not pay them much attention; my scouts pass through the forest too often to be of much interest to those foul creatures. If your leader sends more of your people through, my scouts will convey whatever message you wish to send back to your realm to them. That way your friends may remain within the circle of enchantment and out of danger, and you may still send your message."

Daniel thought it was a great plan, but looked down to Jack to double check before saying so. The Colonel thought about it for a moment, then glanced to Sam and Teal'c. Sam shrugged - she seemed to be doing a lot of that lately - and Teal'c inclined his head. Jack turned to Legolas at the opposite end of the table.

"We _will_ have to get back to the Stargate eventually though, you know," he told the Prince.

A slight smile played around Legolas' lips. "Of course," he acknowledged. "I will not prevent you from returning to your realm. I will have you escorted back to the _Rind i Galad _as soon as dawn's light touches the sky if you wish. But you must at least wait until daybreak, for then the Orcs will be many less in number."

The Colonel nodded finally, much to Daniel's relief. "All right… but you'd better let me write a note or something. I'm not sure General Hammond or another team would believe what a bunch of - er… strangerstell them."

"General Hammond is the name of our leader," Daniel supplied, and Legolas gave him an appreciative nod.

"Then it shall be arranged," the Prince said with a note of finality. "I will have a quill and parchment brought up as soon as the table is cleared, and then I will arrange for my scouts to journey to the _Rind i Galad_. They will deliver your message for you."

"Thank you," Daniel said, giving a slight bow. "We're very grateful for all of your help."

Legolas gave a low bow in return, offering another smile. "It is the least we can do for friends."

* * *

Sam sat cross-legged on her cushion, absently tapping one finger against the worn wood of the tabletop as she watched Colonel O'Neill fiddle with the white feather quill and coarse parchment. Daniel stood behind the Colonel, looking over the man's gray-haired head as he wrote, and Teal'c sat quietly on his cushion next to Carter, his dark eyes drifting from O'Neill to their surroundings and back again.

The table had been cleared, the guests of the feast departed. Even Legolas had left them alone to their task, and in the quiet of the night the insects were once again the prominent sound, chirping and whirring in similar rhythms to the nightly summer insects on Earth.

"How exactly do we know that these _scouts_ will actually take our note to the Stargate?" Jack suddenly asked, squinting in concentration as he carefully scratched a word down on the parchment.

Sam looked to Daniel and Teal'c, but Daniel took the initiative to answer.

"They've been nice to us so far. Why would they just suddenly decide not to do what they've said they were going to do?"

O'Neill shrugged. "I dunno. But we just met these people… I'd rather at least one of us go with them, just to be sure."

"The Prince seemed pretty adamant about us waiting to go ourselves until morning, sir," Sam said, seriously doubting even anyone as stubborn as the Colonel would get the elves to change their minds about that. Not from what she'd seen cross Barahir and Legolas' faces earlier.

"If the elves are correct in assuming the Orcs are lying in wait for us," Teal'c added, "then it would prove foolish to walk into their trap."

Jack looked up from his note. "So you guys are okay with staying here overnight? In the trees?"

There was a short silence while the other three looked to each other again.

"Well, their beds _are_ really comfortable," Daniel put in.

Jack twisted to look over his shoulder at the archaeologist. "But they don't have any _plumbing _in these treehouses!" he protested.

Sam suppressed a sudden urge to giggle, mentally picturing the Colonel having to stumble out of bed in the early morning and walk all the way down the ramp to the elves' equivalent of an outhouse to relieve himself. But then the idea wasn't funny anymore as she realized she would have to do the same thing. She cleared her throat. "It's only one night, sir."

"Unless of course the General approves my request to stay and question the elves about Romestamo and the Orcs," Daniel added quickly, glancing up at her and lifting his eyebrows in a way that asked for her support.

"Oh, right," she said, giving the archaeologist a small smile of apology.

"Of course," O'Neill muttered. "_If_ the General approves –"

"Well he can't approve of it unless you put it in the letter."

"Yes, yes, I'm getting to it, Daniel."

"Really? 'Cuz you don't have much room left…"

Sam could tell from where she was sitting that half of the sheet of parchment was covered in indecipherable chicken scratch and scribbles – the Colonel had had a very difficult time mastering the technique of writing with a real quill…

O'Neill slammed the large feather down on the table, turning again to look up at Daniel. "Would _you_ like to try to write with this damn thing?"

"Yes, actually, could I?"

"Be my guest." Jack stood from his cushion and Daniel took his place, and now it was Daniel writing and the Colonel looking over his shoulder, although Daniel's words seemed to be much more fluid than Jack's.

In a few short minutes the letter had been finished and signed, and the four of them stood from their seats to go meet Legolas and his assembled scouts at the bottom of the ramp as had been planned.

"Let's just hope these folks are good on their word," Jack said as the team stepped through the huge platform's wide entryway and began their descent.

"I have seen no signs of deception among these people," Teal'c said.

"And even if for some reason they can't get the letter to the 'Gate," Sam spoke up, "chances are the scouts will meet up with the other SG team eventually. And if not, they'll either find this settlement or we'll find them in the morning."

"Yah," Jack murmured, but he said nothing more about the matter.

* * *

Legolas stood with Aglarion and Barahir and a group of five elven scouts beneath the looming tree that held the feasting flet, waiting for their visitors to emerge with the letter. All eight figures stood motionlessly in the near dark, until at last Aglarion shifted on his feet and leaned in toward the Prince's ear.

"Are you sure this is wise, my Lord?" the elf whispered, speaking in Sindarin.

Legolas blinked, turning to look at his second-in-command. "What do you mean?"

"Allowing the strangers to stay here?" Aglarion clarified, still keeping his voice low, brows knitted together in concern.

"Where else would you have them go? We cannot allow them to roam the forest at night; the Orcs would be upon them like wolves upon a deer."

"But how can you be sure they are who they say they are? How do we know they are not allied with the enemy and merely trying to learn the location of the Ring of Light?"

"I sensed no evil upon their arrival," Legolas replied. "They are somewhat wary of us, but that is to be expected. Tell me, Aglarion, have you sensed anything ill of them since they came to us?"

The Rivendell-native hesitated, but after a moment shook his head. "No, my Lord. I have not."

"They also speak the language of Belegrandir. Have you ever known any of our enemies to speak that language?"

Again Aglarion was forced to shake his head. "No, my Lord," he admitted, his voice now subdued.

"And they have agreed to wait until morning to go to the Ring of Light. Were they in the enemy's employ, likely they would have been much more insistent to be taken to the great ring immediately."

"That is true as well, my Lord. Forgive me for questioning you, my concerns were unfounded."

Legolas shook his head, dismissing Aglarion's apology with a wave of his hand. "That is not so, Aglarion. You are right in one matter. It _is_ dangerous to have them here. The Orcs know of their presence in our woods… likely they will have already reported the appearance of strangers in this country to their leader. And that can only mean that more Orcs will be deployed to look for them."

"The Orcs will certainly test our borders," Aglarion said quietly. "If they believe the strangers to be here they may even attempt a full fledged attack. Our boundary enchantment is not as strong as that of Lothlórien – the Orcs could succeed in breaking it."

Legolas nodded gravely. "I know. I have already ordered the perimeter guard doubled. And scouts are out on the surrounding lands even now."

Aglarion's youthful face was troubled. "My Lord… perhaps we should send the strangers back to the Ring of Light tonight. We could triple their escort protection…"

But Legolas was shaking his silver-encircled head. "No. We cannot risk them falling into enemy hands."

"But my Lord… you risk the lives of all your people by harboring them…"

Legolas turned to Aglarion again, his blue eyes locking the gaze of the younger elf. "You have learned your history, Aglarion. Do you not remember what has been written about the dark years when the Ring of Light was in the possession of evil? If we should allow these strangers to go to the ring tonight, and they should by some means be captured, and the enemy learn of the ring's location… this entire _world _would be at risk. No… our guests must remain here for tonight, they are much safer within our borders than without, even if our boundary enchantment should fail."

Aglarion looked Legolas in the eyes for a long moment, and then he nodded in understanding and dropped his gaze, turning away to the ramp leading down from the feasting tree, where the footsteps of the four strangers could now be heard.

* * *

"Sooo… now what?" Jack drawled, turning away from the view of forest the room offered to look at the other three members of his team. The letter had been handed off to the appointed scouts, the scouts had headed off into the woods, Barahir had said his farewells and returned to his people – wherever that was – and Legolas had excused himself on official business. SG-1 had ambled back to the room Daniel had been assigned to while he was recovering from the poisoned arrow and now waited for morning, but O'Neill was getting tired of just waiting.

Teal'c, standing near the entrance to the room, merely offered one lifted eyebrow. Sam, sitting on a finely carved chair next to the room's single bed, opened her mouth to reply, but then shut it again as she realized she had no suggestions. Daniel was stretched out on the bed, left hand under his head, staring up at the ceiling.

"Well," the archaeologist began, "I would _like_ to go speak to some of these people about Romestamo and Belegrandir and all the rest, but it seems the only ones who speak English are busy or gone, and I haven't quite worked out their language well enough to understand the others yet."

"You've worked it out at all?" Jack asked.

Daniel sat up, wincing slightly as he briefly put too much weight on his right bicep. "Yah… it seems slightly similar to Finnish, but I can't be positive unless I look at my notes… and I don't have my notes." He shrugged.

"I see," O'Neill commented flatly. "So… if General Hammond grants your request you're going to want to go back and get your stuff. Is that what you're saying?"

"Um… yah. Exactly."

"Okay. So… what do we do while we're waiting for Hammond's reply?"

"Maybe we should get some sleep, sir," Sam said. "It's been a long day… and we don't really have anything else to do…"

Jack pursed his lips and sighed. Now that he let himself think about it, he was rather tired. But he hesitated in relenting to Carter's suggestion, tapping his fingers on the butt of his P-90 as he tried to think of some alternative activity. His eyes drifted to the corner of the room, where Daniel's SGC-issued jacket, t-shirt, belt, and boots still sat neatly folded by the wall. O'Neill suddenly frowned, then glanced back at Daniel. He cleared his throat.

"Daniel. Where are your weapons?"

The younger man's blue eyes came up to meet the Colonel's gaze briefly, but then they flicked away to glance around the room. "Uh… I don't know. When I woke up they were gone."

"And you didn't think to ask where they were?"

"I didn't even know where I was, and I told you, I don't know the language yet."

"Well you'd better find out where they went before we leave for the 'Gate!"

Daniel opened his mouth to make some reply but before he could say anything there was a commotion from below. Jack turned to look over the half wall again, squinting down into the heavily shadowed depths of the forest around them. Sam, Teal'c and Daniel joined him at the railing shortly, and all four of them watched as an elf, bow and quiver strapped upon his back, came running down the path that passed beneath their platform, shouting something in a very urgent tone.

They followed him over to the other side of the room, watching as he disappeared off into the darkness again, his shouts gradually fading away. But in his wake many other elves were emerging from hidden places among the black shadows, and they spoke to each other in animated tones before hurrying off in the same direction as the first elf.

Jack looked expectantly to Daniel but the archaeologist threw his hands out in helplessness. "I told you I don't know –"

"Yah, yah I gotcha." O'Neill was having a hard time believing Daniel couldn't understand _any_ of the elvish language. The kid spoke so many tongues that Jack had almost forgotten what it was like to not be able to understand someone. "Well, something's up, let's go see what's happening."

No one offered any protests as Jack hefted his rifle and led the way down the slightly-too-skinny-for-comfort ramp to the ground. He hesitated briefly at the base of the tree but then switched on the P-90's flashlight and trotted off after the elves, keeping his ears both on the footsteps of his team members behind him and the surrounding woods. He found it disturbing that the insects, annoyingly constant just moments before, had abruptly fallen silent.

"Ow! Damnit!"

Jack immediately swung around at the sound of Daniel's hissed words, rifle raised and heart jamming into his throat at the thought that the Orcs had found them again. Carter ducked out of his way, also bringing her rifle up, and Teal'c had his staff weapon primed and ready in the next instant.

Daniel was holding one bare foot, leaning against a tree and scowling, but there were no arrow ends sticking out of him this time and Jack lowered his rifle, exhaling a breath of combined relief and irritation.

"I think I stepped on a rock," Daniel explained, rubbing his foot and squinting a sheepish look into the beam of Carter's flashlight.

"What in the hell are you doing without your shoes on?" Jack demanded. He jabbed his finger toward the treehouse they had just exited. "Go back and get your boots." But Daniel hesitated, seemingly reluctant to leave the others. "Go now!" O'Neill barked, hearing the commotion behind him grow louder. He watched as the archaeologist grudgingly turned and carefully picked his way back in the direction they had come.

Jack turned to look over his shoulder, a feeling of anxiety growing in his chest. He didn't want to stand around waiting for Daniel to get back… he wasn't sure if they even had time to stand around waiting…

"Hey Daniel?"

The man turned at his name.

"Just stay in that room, we'll go check things out and get back to you."

"But I-"

"You don't even have your gun, Daniel! Stay in that room. That's an order!"

Daniel shot him a look before turning on his heel and proceeding, even more slowly now, toward the sloping ramp that led back up to the bedroom.

Jack shook his head, then gestured for Carter and Teal'c to follow him before heading off on his previous path. They had hardly gotten beyond the outskirts of the occupied trees before several figures stepped out in front them. Jack came to an abrupt halt and lifted his rifle again, but in the glare of his flashlight he saw the four shapes in front of him were elves, not Orcs. He lowered his weapon, wishing these people would learn how to announce themselves once and awhile.

"Fer cryin' out loud-"

"You must go back," one of the elves said, his words so heavily accented they were hardly distinguishable as English. "You cannot come this way."

"Why not?" Jack asked immediately. In the distance behind the elf-made barrier, sudden shouts echoed away into the night, followed shortly by the snapping of many bows and several inhuman shrieks the Colonel knew could only belong to those ugly, twisted creatures called Orcs. The elves in front of him exchanged glances with each other, and Jack took the opportunity to try and slip by them. But they quickly moved to cut him off again.

"You must go back," the one said again, and O'Neill peered at the blond elf, thinking it might have been Aglarion, although they all kind of looked the same to him.

"Look," he said, as calmly as he could, "I know something's going on out there, and it's not anything good. We can help you." Jack lifted his P-90. "See these? These are _guns_. They work really well… better than your bows and arrows. Really."

"You cannot help us," said a soft voice from behind, and Jack turned to see Legolas walking up behind Teal'c. The Prince no longer wore his robes or his silver headband, but instead had donned a green tunic and brown pants and carried his own long bow and loaded quiver upon his back. In fact, had it not been for the voice, Jack wasn't sure he would have even recognized the Prince for who he was.

"What?" It was all Jack could think to say at the moment.

Legolas went to stand among the other elves, and Aglarion – if that's who it really was – looked relieved to have his Prince there to explain.

"The Orcs are looking for you and your friends," Legolas said. "This is no ordinary scouting party attacking our borders. I had thought they would come, but not this soon. They are getting desperate, and that makes them even more dangerous."

"Which is exactly why you should let us help you out!" O'Neill insisted.

"No," Legolas said again, more strongly this time. "Your weapons may be effective against their numbers, but using them would only confirm their beliefs that you are here. And that would only increase their determination to penetrate our defenses and get to you, never mind how many of my people they kill in the process. Do you understand?"

Jack hesitated, the sounds of the unfolding struggle along the perimeters of the elves' territory growing louder. "If you let us help we could save your people-"

Legolas shook his head once. "No. If you use your weapons… if the Orcs see any of you here… you would be condemning my people to endless battle, for then the Orcs would not cease their hostilities until they had one of you in their custody."

"They want the 'Gate that badly, huh?"

The Prince's blue eyes sharpened. "I believe so. But even if I am wrong, would you be willing to risk your people and mine in such a manner?"

O'Neill sighed, remembering the sight of those Orcs jumping out of the forest at him and his team, remembering the arrow shaft sticking out of Daniel's arm, the panic that had first hit him when the kid had gone unconscious… "No," he answered finally.

Legolas gave him an appreciative nod. "The best thing for you to do is to go back to your rooms and wait. Do not fear; the Orcs have not succeeded in any of their attacks before this night, and they will not succeed now. I will retrieve you when this fight has finished."

With that the Prince turned and jogged off toward the outlying noise, the other four elves following after him. Jack stood and watched them until they vanished from his view, and then he turned to Carter and Teal'c, who were both looking at him in question.

"Sir…"

O'Neill waved away Sam's protest. "He's right, Carter. We'd better just wait." The words sounded wrong even to Jack's own ears, especially with the continued shouts and shrieks ringing through the otherwise silent night. But something in Legolas' face had convinced Jack the elf knew what he was talking about, and that reassurance had swayed the Colonel to give in to the Prince's request. Waiting. Oh, how he hated it. He sighed deeply. "Well kids, let's get back to the bunk. It's going to be a long night."

* * *

General Hammond stood in the Control Room of Stargate Command, looking out through the thick-glassed window to the Embarkation Room beyond. SG-13, under the command of Colonel Dave Dixon, performed some last minute checks of weapons and radios as they waited for the Stargate to finish dialing.

"Chevron seven, locked," Sergeant Davis said, his voice echoing through the 'Gate room via the PA system.

The familiar solid thump of the seventh chevron locking was followed almost immediately by the liquid whoosh of the forming wormhole's vortex. Then the event horizon stabilized, becoming a flat, shimmering pool of blue-white light.

Hammond reached forward for the nearest microphone, flipping the switch that would carry his words over into the Embarkation Room. "SG-13, be careful," he reminded them. "Your primary goal is to establish communication with SG-1. We need to know their situation. Do not, I repeat, _do not_ take any unnecessary risks. Understood?"

Colonel Dixon twisted around to face the window, tossing the General a smart salute. "Understood, General, sir."

The other three members of the team turned to salute as well, and Hammond nodded to them. "Very well. I'll hear from you gentlemen at oh-two-hundred hours then. That gives you one hour to find SG-1 before you have to check in."

"Don't worry, sir," Colonel Dixon said, his voice echoing in the cavernous space of the Embarkation Room. "We'll be checking in well before then… _with _SG-1."

General Hammond allowed a small smile to touch his lips. "I hope you're right, Colonel. Good luck."

The man on the other side of the glass gave a nod, and then motioning to the three other team members he turned and made his way up the metal ramp toward the waiting 'Gate. Dr. Cameron Balinsky, SG-13's civilian archaeologist, was first to follow his commanding officer, and Senior Airmen Jake Bosworth and Simon Wells brought up the rear together. The four men stepped through the Stargate, vanishing from Hammond's view, and a few seconds later the 'Gate disengaged, the circle of quivering light vanished.

The General sighed, crossing his arms as he gazed out at the now silent 'Gate. SG-1 had failed to report at their first scheduled radio check in, and now it was six hours later. He had hesitated to send another team after them at first, knowing full well after all these years the kind of things that SG-1 got into, and knowing that they also often got out of such things on their own. But as the hours had passed and the 'Gate remained quiet, Hammond and grown more and more uneasy, until at last he determined that maybe this time SG-1 was going to need some help getting out of whatever they had gotten themselves into. Now he just hoped SG-13 wouldn't arrive too late. He hoped he hadn't waited too long to send someone after them.

Hammond shook himself from his thoughts, trying to fight off the guilt that seemed to close around his heart. If anything had happened to SG-1…

"I'll be in my office," Hammond told Sergeant Davis, and with that the General turned and made his way toward the spiral staircase at the back of the room. He had just put his foot on the bottom-most stair when the 'Gate's inner ring began to spin, prompting the klaxons to blare out a warning. General Hammond turned and went back to the window facing the Stargate, glancing down to Sergeant Davis.

"Incoming wormhole," Davis said, promptly closing the iris even as he watched the computer monitors for any sign of an offworld team's identification code.

Hammond saw a signal come in, displayed on the screen as a jagged line.

"Receiving IDC, sir," Davis said, and then he blinked, squinting through his glasses at the monitor in front of him. "It's… it's SG-13, sir."

"Already?" Hammond muttered, unsure of whether to be relieved or concerned at the swiftness of SG-13's return. "Open the iris," he ordered, and Sergeant Davis was quick to comply. Colonel Dixon stepped through the 'Gate, followed by the rest of his team, but when SG-1 did not follow them General Hammond made for the stairs that led to the hallway and the door to the Embarkation Room.

The heavy blast door slid open and Hammond strode through, coming to stand in front of SG-13 just as the 'Gate disengaged again. "Colonel," the General said, frowning as he looked over the group, "what's going on?"

"We, uh… we made contact with SG-1, sir," Colonel Dixon explained. "Sort of."

"What exactly is that supposed to mean?"

The Colonel held out a neatly folded piece of rough paper.

The General took it from the Colonel's fingers, frowning in confusion. He unfolded it carefully, then skimmed over the scrawled words until he came to the bottom of the page, where two familiar signatures stood out: _Colonel Jack O'Neill, Dr. Daniel Jackson_. Hammond's frown deepened. The signatures looked authentic… he reread the message the letter contained:

_General Hammond,_

_We know you're probably worried about us by now, but we're all fine. We've holed up with some natives who have told us some very interesting things, but we can't get back to the Stargate until morning. There are these really ugly things called Orcs that seem very intent on capturing us, so we're going to do as the elves say and just wait out the night. We should be back at the 'Gate sometime early tomorrow morning, though, so we'll see you then_.

Hammond grunted. That sounded like O'Neill. After the Colonel's message was a short paragraph undoubtedly written by Jackson:

_We think there might be a Goa'uld on this planet, one that has no idea where the Stargate is, which means they're stuck here. We think the Goa'uld might be the leader of the Orcs, but I need more time to question the natives about this. I request permission to remain on PT2-571 and further investigate the possibility of Goa'uld occupation. I can give you a more detailed explanation in the morning - Jack has taken up most of the paper in his attempts to use a real quill._

And then, scrawled just above the signatures:

_It's not as easy as Daniel makes it sound, sir, trust me._

The General glanced to the scratches and splatters of ink smeared across the top half of the paper and smiled. Yes, Jack and Daniel had written this, there was no question about that. Well, that was good news. At least they were safe, just cut off from the 'Gate for a few more hours… A sudden thought occurred to him, and he looked up at Colonel Dixon.

"Colonel… how did you get this letter?"

The man cleared his throat and shifted on his feet, then looked over his shoulder to Dr. Balinsky, who gave the slightest shrug of his shoulders. Dixon turned back to the General. "Er… well, sir, there was a group of natives waiting for us when we went through the 'Gate."

"Waiting for you?"

"Yes, sir. As soon as we came through they approached us. I thought they might be hostile but… it turned out they weren't."

"One of them spoke English," Dr. Balinsky put in.

"Very broken English," Wells added.

"He tried to explain things to us, I think," Dixon spoke up again. "But his accent was so heavy I could hardly understand him. All I got was that SG-1 was safe, back at his village, or whatever… and that this letter was from Colonel O'Neill. Of course I didn't believe him at first… we tried to tell them that we needed to look for SG-1 anyway, but he seemed very insistent that we not stray too far from the Stargate."

"Do you think it had something to do with the Orcs O'Neill mentions in this letter?" Hammond asked.

Dixon shrugged. "I don't know. It's possible, sir."

"Or it could be that they're hiding something," Bosworth commented.

Dixon hesitated. "That's a possibility as well, sir. But after I read the letter… I thought it was best to bring it back to you and have you look at it."

"You did good, Colonel. The letter seems authentic… you say the natives were not hostile?"

Dixon shook his head. "No, sir. They carried bows and arrows but never threatened us. Even when we tried to get passed them they seemed much more inclined to talk us out of it rather than resort to force."

Hammond sighed. "Well, it seems the best thing we can do then is wait until morning. If we don't hear something from SG-1 then we'll arrange another rescue team."

"And what if the natives _are_ hiding something, sir?" Bosworth asked.

The General turned to look at the man. "We'll look into that in the morning as well, Airman. But for now I think waiting is our best option. Let's just hope that by morning, as Dr. Jackson said in the letter, we'll get a better explanation. You boys go get some rest while you can… it's going to be a long night."

* * *

TO BE CONTINUED...

* * *


End file.
